It can be challenging to know which streaming service to choose. Many possibilities are available; depending on your music consumption habits, one may be favored over another. That’s why Soundiiz tries to give you all the keys you need to make your choice with peace of mind. We look at two music streaming giants: Spotify and Amazon Music. Spotify VS Amazon Music: which is the best?
We hope you’ll see things more clearly by analyzing these two platforms point by point and naming a winner for each. And that you’ll want to use Soundiiz to complement these two services!
What’s the difference?
Spotify was one of the first streaming services to enter the market. In 2008, the Swedish company took advantage of the launch pad provided by Pandora, Last.FM and others, and the worrying arrival of music piracy, to establish itself in a market that was still in its infancy. Spotify’s founders are visionaries: they know that music streaming is a unique business opportunity and that many other players will soon follow in their footsteps. Over the years, Spotify has diversified, investing millions of dollars in its algorithm and the podcast market. Around 500 million people use Spotify worldwide.
Staying on top
Now the world leader, Spotify has also come in for its fair share of criticism concerning the low remuneration of artists and the audio quality of its service. We’ll talk about these below. However, Spotify also invests considerable sums in supporting artists via the Spotify For Artists initiative, which we mentioned in a previous article. The company innovates, regularly offering new features and trying to stay on top in an increasingly competitive market. Relying on one of the best algorithms in existence, but also thanks to its extensive experience in music streaming, Spotify still has many years ahead of it! But beware, competition, including from Amazon Music, is increasingly intense.
Few people know it, but Amazon’s first entry into the world of music came in 2007, a year before the creation of Spotify. Initially named Amazon MP3, the first service to sell MP3s online, it was renamed Prime Music in 2014. From then on, Amazon Music took on another dimension, as Amazon Prime subscribers could now enjoy a music streaming service that complemented their subscription at no extra cost. The strategy works, and in 2016, Amazon Music Unlimited was launched. The catalog of songs grew significantly, and Amazon Music continued to expand.
To the point of seriously rivaling Spotify? That’s what we’re going to find out.
Audio Quality – Spotify VS Amazon Music: which is the best?
Let’s face it: it could be a closer match here.
Audio quality is the main flaw cited by Spotify’s detractors. The platform still needs to offer an HD option worthy of the name: its long-heralded and postponed Hi-Fi functionality has yet to be brought to market, penalizing Spotify. This is not to say that Spotify doesn’t allow you to listen to high-quality music, but it is simply that its “Premium” option doesn’t rival some of its competitors.
Spotify should be fine if you listen to music without high-quality headphones or speakers. However, audiophiles should avoid Spotify, especially considering that many of its rivals, such as Apple Music, Deezer, YouTube Music, and Amazon Music, do better.
Amazon Music offers one of the best HD options on the market. Its audio ratios range from 44.1kHz to 129kHz, which is as close to quality as a CD can offer. As a bonus, Ultra HD has been available since 2020, in addition to a Dolby Atmos and 360 Reality Audio option. This translates into a rich sound with more nuances. To offer music in Ultra HD format, Amazon has formed partnerships with Universal Music Group and Warner Music Group.
TIDAL and Qobuz are often considered the best solutions for audiophiles, but Amazon Music Unlimited has some severe arguments.
Winner: Amazon Music
User Experience & Algorithms – Spotify VS Amazon Music: which is the best?
If Spotify is currently the market leader, it’s not for nothing. It’s largely thanks to its recommendation system and, therefore, to its algorithm. In the opinion of many users, Spotify has no rivals when it comes to helping users discover new artists. Its “Daily Mixes,” playlists mixing the tastes of its customers with artists they don’t seem to know, are very popular and categorized by genre. Spotify uses AI and a wealth of metadata to design personalized recommendations.
In this article, we explain how these algorithms work.
Moreover, Spotify recently teamed up with BandsinTown to promote Live music. This is a double benefit for both users and artists. For each artist listened to, a list of live events is proposed, with a link to the purchase of tickets. This allows users to switch from streaming to the “real world.” For artists, it’s a way of selling more concert tickets and thus generating additional revenue. As is often the case, Spotify is trying to stay ahead of the competition with features like these.
Amazon Music still needs to catch up with the times when it comes to its algorithm. Even if its “My Discovery Mix” feature allows you to start the week with a list of songs based on your previous listening, the suggestions are not always relevant or less relevant than Spotify’s.
This is the main point of difference between the two streaming platforms. Even if Amazon makes an effort, it remains in second place.
Regarding user experience, we base our analysis on the various feedback we can get from forums and websites. Neither platform has the upper hand over the other regarding navigation and ergonomics. They are, in fact, quite similar in the way they work!
Winner: Spotify
Price & Subscription
– (as of April 2024) –
It’s no secret that almost all streaming platforms have increased their monthly rates. Spotify and Amazon Music Unlimited are no exception. So you might want to switch from one to the other: don’t forget that Soundiiz can make the transition easier!
What’s unique about Amazon Music Unlimited is that the music streaming service can be paired with an Amazon Prime subscription, allowing you to pay slightly less.
Amazon Music Unlimited is priced at $10.99 per month for non-Prime subscribers ($5.99 per month for students) and $9.99 for Prime subscribers.
Like Spotify, Deezer, or Apple Music, Amazon also offers a “family plan” that allows six people to use the same account for $16.99 monthly.
In addition, Amazon offers a 90-day trial period to test its services. That’s more than its competitors, and it will give you plenty of time to decide whether or not the service meets your needs.
On the other hand, Spotify Premium offers a more flexible package with more options to suit your needs. Its individual subscription is the same price as Amazon Music Unlimited (without a Prime subscription), at $10.99. Spotify also offers a Duo subscription for two people ($14.99), as well as a Family ($16.99) and Student ($5.99) option.
As you can see, the prices are similar, but if you already have a Prime subscription with Amazon, you’ll save a dollar on your monthly subscription price. On the other hand, if you want to use a streaming account with someone else, for example, Spotify is your option. So it all depends on how you use it!
Winner: It’s a tie!
Catalogs – Spotify VS Amazon Music: which is the best?
– (as of April 2024) –
Here, too, the match is close. According to the latest data, Amazon Music Unlimited has slightly more songs in its catalog than Spotify. Both platforms have around one hundred million references. At this level, virtually all the music on earth is available… even if the most passionate among you will inevitably find gaps! So it’s not on this point that the match is being played out but on content ancillary to the music itself. Streaming platforms have long understood that they must offer more than just music. They are now global platforms, straddling the line between entertainment and education.
Regarding podcasts, Amazon has done everything it can to rival Spotify. In 2020, Amazon acquired podcast production company Wondery for $300 million, enabling them to position themselves among the market leaders. However, Spotify is maintaining its lead in the field with more original content designed for the platform. Spotify has the edge in this area.
Winner: Spotify
Spotify VS Amazon Music: which is the best?
Spotify knows its competitors have gained ground over the last few years. YouTube Music and Amazon Music Unlimited are clever in offering their streaming services. They couple them with either the power of Google or Amazon. They can thus count on the power of a well-recognized service, but above all, on a customer database of several hundred million users. Amazon Music is, therefore, increasingly powerful and should continue to grow. Its catalog is massive, its audio quality is top-notch, and its user experience is among the best on the market.
On the other hand, Spotify has a more precise algorithm, enabling it to discover more songs and artists than Amazon. The Swedish giant remains the market leader, but for how long? As we’ve been saying here for months and months, Spotify now needs an HD option worthy of the name.
Your choice between Amazon Music Unlimited and Spotify is pretty simple. If audio quality is your main argument, then turn to Amazon. The service won’t disappoint! But if music streaming = discovery for you, then Spotify has to be your choice.
These are the two differentiating points between these services, enabling you to make an informed choice.
Soundiiz: Transfer your playlists from one music service to another
One of the main things that could prevent you from changing your music streaming platform is losing all your music collection, including your playlists, favorite albums or tracks, and followed artists. And having to rebuild this library with a new service could be time-consuming and even impossible, depending on the size of your collection.
Soundiiz solves this by using an advanced matching process, allowing you to move quickly and with no effort from Spotify to Amazon Music Unlimited, for example! Then, use the playlist synchronization feature to keep your playlists updated.
When you unsubscribe from a streaming service, your data and playlists can be deleted. Using Soundiiz, you create backups of your YouTube Music playlists as CSV or backups of your Spotify playlists as CSV. Convenient!
To sum everything up, Soundiiz allows you to subscribe to Amazon Music Unlimited and Spotify without losing your data. Interesting, isn’t it? Since Spotify has upped its premium prices, many of you may want to switch to Amazon Music Unlimited. Soundiiz makes it possible!
So, sign up for a trial, once with Amazon Music and once with Spotify, and choose!
